Saturday, March 26, 2011

Hind Abdulrazak is young, lovely and very creative second-generation Dubaiian.

She used to work in construction - boooooring - but eventually swapped her briefcase for scissors and thimble.

Hind is the managing partner of Candella boutique on fancy and posh Jumeirah strip.

Here she sells some other people's clothes, but also her own wonderful, skillfully draped dresses.

She was nice enough to explain to me her creative process:

"For the most part I design by organically draping fabrics and pinning them to a form until I am happy with the shape!"

I think her dresses are delicious and have this gorgeous feminine feel. To me it looks like Hind takes inspiration in that glamorous, bygone era of 1950s, which is so on right now - think Mad Man, Dita Von Tease, Burlesque.

Most prices fall in the AED 500 - 1500 range but some of the eveninggownsare AED 2500- 3500.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Basil Soda is a Lebanese designer, not a refreshing soft drink. He studied architecture and hat making back in his native Beirut, where he eventually opened a boutique. At some point he worked under legendary Elie Saab.

Right now Basil Soda is trying to make it big in the USA by dressing C-list celebrity crowd - Paula Abdul, Carrie Underwood and some british girls i've never heard of.

Monday, March 14, 2011

I think he should've been in Black Swan, not Nathalie Portman. Look at how graceful, poised and ballerina-like he is on this picture!

Secondly, I think Lady GaGa should give him a call ASAP. Dude is talented like that.

Check out the shoulders on most of the dresses - you can play American football in them.

Besides doing all sorts of crazy dresses with shoulders, trains, crystals, bells, whistles and the whole nine yards of tulle and organza, Ezra Santos also dabbles in menswear.

Here's some twinkle toe models working it in his chitons ? or harem pants with hoodies?

Perfect club wear, don't you think? Why don't you go buy one of these for your boy-toy and take him clubbing wearing this gorgeous ensemble. See what'll happen and report back to me.
A small social experiment if you will.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Marie Antoinette, Imelda Marcos, Leila Trabelsi - the list goes on and on. Many a beautiful women have a knack of contributing to a long deserved demise of their mighty men.

Usually their excesses, coupled with their unattainable beauty and arrogance get on the hungry and piss-poor population's last nerve and said population revolts.

Whatever is happening in the Middle East now - Tunis, Yemen, Egypt, Libya - is nothing new. Almost 30 years ago impoverished people of Iran ousted their hated last king and his gorgeous wife, Empress Farah Pahlavi in a powerful revolution.

Farah Pahlavi was a beauty. She recieved european education, had an amazing taste and even more astonishing appetite for luxury. YSL did her dresses, Andy Warhol did her portraits and Jackie O was her friend.

Countries that initially welcomed exiled imperial couple later asked them to leave, her husband passed away shortly from cancer and her 31 year old daughter died after battling anorexia/depression/bulimia.

At the beginning of this year her youngest son committed suicide.

On this sad note I leave you to marvel at this jewel of Persia and count your own blessings...